Senator CONROY (Victoria—Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity) (14:48): I thank Senator Madigan for his ongoing interest in the National Broadband Network. The senator asks a very legitimate question. I indicate that when we announced the network we committed to connect 90 per cent of premises by fibre and to guarantee a 12-megabit download and a one-megabit upload by advanced wireless and satellite. We commissioned an implementation study from McKinsey's and KPMG, not engineers. That study advised that the most cost-effective deployment of the network to fulfil our commitments was to extend the fibre coverage from 90 to 93 per cent of premises. It further advised that four per cent of premises could cost-effectively be connected by wireless and three per cent by satellite. In short, we did exactly what those opposite assert we have not done. We commissioned independent experts to compare fibre, wireless and satellite to determine the most cost-effective way of meeting the goal of delivering the government's commitment. Senator Birmingham: That's a bit of an exaggeration. Senator CONROY: Sorry—McKinsey's know a bit more about it than you, Senator Birmingham. My apologies for accepting that interjection. On your question of why the satellite service— Senator Birmingham interjecting— Senator CONROY: I apologise that you cannot hear, Senator Madigan. On the issue of why people should take a wireless service rather than a satellite service, once the satellite is in the sky it is very hard to improve the service. You can tweak it a little bit and you can get software improvements, but it basically stays where it is at from the point of view of technology when it goes up, and it is up for 15 years. The wireless network will be able to be easily upgraded to greater speeds as the next generation of boxes that go on the towers are developed. For residents to say 'I'd rather stick to satellite' would be to deny themselves the future upgrades of the wireless path. (Time expired)